Among the artifacts and riches discovered by Howard Carter's team when they opened the Egyptian King Tut's tomb in 1922 was a three-fold bed made of lightweight hardwood. Carter made a sketch of the bed, and later researchers took photographs of it; but until now, no one had done an in-depth study of the bed itself, its makeup, and its possibilities.

A study done by Tokyo's Musashino University posits that the bed folded up into a Z-shape, thus folding three pieces into one. It is so far the only three-fold bed found in an Egyptian tomb; other found beds are two-fold.

Five regular beds were found in Tut's tomb; the three-fold bed was smaller in comparison.

The three-fold bed has four wooden lion-like legs, copper alloy drums, and special bronze hinges that folded up neatly into something easy to carry. The hinges were of two types. Double hinges cover one pair of legs; the other two pairs of legs feature single hinges and stoppers. Covering the entire frame was a weaving mat.

The researchers suggest that King Tut used the bed just as people today use similar beds: to sleep or sit on while on the road.